Civilian
The eleventh and last studio album, recorded in Los Angeles with the former Beatles engineer Geoff Emerick.
Gentle Giant, 1980
- Released
- 1980
- Studio
- Sound City Studios, Van Nuys, Los Angeles
- Label
- Chrysalis (UK), Columbia (US)
Civilian was recorded at Sound City Studios in Van Nuys with Geoff Emerick, who had engineered for the Beatles. It is mostly short rock songs, closer to a traditional rock sound than the band's progressive style, and it returned Gentle Giant to Columbia in the US and Canada after eight years, the last Columbia album having been Octopus. It peaked at 203 on the Billboard 200, and the band played a final tour and split soon after.
Kerry Minnear said he was far more satisfied with this album and its songs. Ray Shulman said he hated making that last record, and Derek Shulman said in 2005 that it was done with less passion than some of the other albums. Reviewing the 2006 reissues, the Village Voice called it bland. A track from the sessions, Heroes No More, appears on some CD reissues.
Track listing
- Convenience (Clean and Easy)3:12
- All Through the Night4:20
- Shadows on the Street3:17
- Number One4:44
- Underground3:47
- I Am a Camera3:29
- Inside Out5:50
- It's Not Imagination3:57
Personnel
- Derek Shulman vocals
- Gary Green electric guitars
- Kerry Minnear keyboards, vocals
- Ray Shulman bass, acoustic guitar, backing vocals
- John Weathers drums, backing vocals
- Geoff Emerick engineer
More from Gentle Giant
Gentle Giant (1970), Acquiring the Taste (1971), Octopus (1972), Three Friends (1972), In a Glass House (1973), The Power and the Glory (1974), Free Hand (1975), Interview (1976), The Missing Piece (1977), Giant for a Day! (1978)
Sources
- Civilian (Gentle Giant album), Wikipedia
- Gentle Giant, Wikipedia